Working on selling a house

[Marthe48]

After my husband got sick, we moved back to the house we moved from. Neither of us were ever in a hurry to get things done, so we ended up owning 2 houses. He passed away 21 months ago. My daughters, friends, and I finally got the rest of my stuff moved last month, the place is fairly clean, yard work is done for the year. My daughter suggested I put a sign in the yard just to see what would happen. I did and put a detailed ad on Facebook Marketplace. Lots of views, a few people ask if it is still for sale. I haven't gotten a realtor, and haven't decided if I want one. I've shown the house 2 times in the last month, and had a no show. I have 3 more people interested just today. I've had 2 offers, one is serious, but it is lower than I want. I'm debating if I'm willing to settle or if I should wait a little longer. I guess it'll depend on the next few days, if any of the people currently interested follow through.

[elleng]

1. Good luck!

Sounds like you're doing well, better than my daughter, who took hers off the market, even tho used a realtor.

[AJT]

2. My husband passed away in June. I don't have a mortgage so I'm in no hurry to sell

I am going to wait and put the house up for sale in the spring, late March. People moving after school ends start to look in early spring so that is when I will get the best price.

[Marthe48]

10. Sorry to hear your sad news

Try to stay in touch with your loved ones, that really helps. It might be spring before this lovely sells.

[dawg day]

3. As a woman alone, you have to think about your safety here.

Make sure you're not alone when you show the house! Let us know how it goes. But letting it go, even as a bargain, might definitely be worth it if you don't have to spend months trying to sell it. I'm really cautious... a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush!

It sounds like you're getting great interest!

[Luciferous]

7. Good advice!

[Marthe48]

11. Thank you for reminding me.

I showed it to lone women and had no trouble. Earlier this year, a contractor was working in another house on the street. He asked if he could come in and peek around. I sized him up and felt like I could take him <jk> but I stayed at the front door and let him tour. He was screaming 'oh my God!' OHHH, my God!' and 'OHH, MYY GAWD!' all through the house. When he got to the kitchen, I thought he'd have a conniption. He said it was an original Sears Spring something kitchen-the cabinets and design. It is a foursquare brick built in the late 1920's. The inside is almost all original. The kitchen and bath, windows, were updated in 1962, but all of the plaster walls and the original woodwork are perfect with the original surface. If I need someone, I'll call one of my friends.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

26. Sounds cool. What state are you in?

[MiniMe]

4. Worth a realtor just for the contracts and paperwork

Realtor will know what is normal for your area and protect you from getting ripped off

[Marthe48]

12. I know a couple of people

My son-in-law runs his family's property management company and his brother is my lawyer. If I need a realtor, I'll be sure to ask.

[dameatball]

5. You can also do FSBO on Zillow if you haven't tried it.

I just took my house off the market temporarily because I have too much going on before 2019 to worry about the hassle. The one thing you need to do if you do not want to use a realtor is find either a real estate attorney who will draw up a contract or an independent real estate agent that will. Bigger agencies have to share the profits, so they give you less leeway on fees. If you have a buyer already, many realtors will charge you less because they have nothing invested.


I have found that there are many real estate contracts that you can download off the internet. The key is to get a written offer that is also notarized with a good faith down payment, non refundable pending inspections.. Don't fall for the "what will you take for it" routine.

[Marthe48]

13. Thanks! Someone wondered if I would try that.

And I'll keep it in mind, hoping I don't have to go further afield to advertise.

[safeinOhio]

6. First rule is

always have a lawyer look everything over.

[Duppers]

9. +100

And get everything in writing. You can find contracts online.

[Marthe48]

14. I will certainly do that. TY

[MissMillie]

18. I agree w/ this, but...

...a realtor can tell you what to expect to get from the sale of the property. They have access to what like properties have sold in your area in recent months.

It can be difficult to know what offer to accept when you don't know the condition of the market.

They can also market your home better than Facebook ever could.

Realtors can also screen buyers. Anyone can make an offer on your property, but there's no saying that those prospective buyers will actually get financing. A realtor can help you with that.

And what many people do not know is that there is a difference between a "real estate agent" and a "realtor."

Yes, you'll pay a commission, but you'll save yourself time and energy (both of which I think are valuable commodities) to sell your property at the highest price possible.

[Merlot]

29. Anyone with the internet has access to what properties have sold in your area

redfin lets you find the area, timeframe, and property facts (number of bedrooms, footage, etci) for any area that you select or draw on the map. It's really a great tool to watch your investment. I look to see what homes with the same number of bedrooms and sq footage, etc have sold for in my area and most importantly what condition they are in by looking at interior photos. Takes the guesswork out of setting a price.

As for screening a buyer, legally a real estate agent must present any written offer, and any offer will come with either proof of funds or pre-approval lletter. You can make sure any offers you get are qualified in the same way.

The only benefit I see to having a real estate agent is the paperwork - inspections, back and forth on repairs, title, escrow, working with the bank, etc. If you find the buyer, you can either find an agent who will give you a break on their commission since they haven't done any leg work or find a real estate attorney. I don't recommend downloading forms from the internet, personally I would find that to risky. Spend a little extra money there and have some peace of mind. And you can also say what commission you're willing to pay to the buyers agent - if any. Possibly your buyer would be willing to pay their agents commission. Good Luck!

[Duppers]

8. Sold 2 homes by myself.

I did a market search, so I knew the pricing quite well.

You must pay an attorney to do the settlement anyway and you can find sales contracts online. If you feel uncomfortable about writing a standard contract, take it to a recommended Real Estate atty.

And you can market the home yourself. Why pay a realtor thousands of $$, for something you can do yourself. And, in addition, you can pass some saving onto your buyer. Remember, all the legal documents need to go to an attorney anyway.

My brother was a Realtor! They do not know as much as some think they do. Think about it and save yourself and your buyer a load of money.

Remember too, get your home as clean as possible and in tip-top shape. Pay for updates, you'll get your money back in 95% of the time. GOOD LUCK!

[Marthe48]

15. I wish we had done what we planned.

Got some of it done, and I don't have the heart to keep doing it. I found a terrific contractor last summer, and most of the projects at both houses are complete. But I didn't want to get into the expensive updates.

We bought property without a realtor and that worked out ok.

So nice that people share their advice and experience! Thanks!

[Corgigal]

16. Tell ya what we did

Just for a different point of view. House was at the tens, all painting neutral and had a cozy feeling. Got a realtors and went about 8 grand under, got 11 people the first day and 3 contracts. I had them fight for it and sold within 48 hours but I had a realtor. They know how to do those pictures just right. If you're curious I can send you my old home listing.

Opps, sold for 12 grand over. So it was fine and I was done.

[Marthe48]

19. Well done!

I wanted to put the price on it I wanted to get and get done, but my son-in-law suggested a higher start price. I'd love to have a bidding war

2 people say they will come and look at it Sunday. Fingers crossed.

[Corgigal]

24. Be bold my dear,

A little lower, to get the people in. However, you have t know what houses are selling for. I was comfortable doing what I'm did , but I didn't do the bait and switch. The buyers did.

[Izzy Blue]

17. The good thing with having a realtor

is they screen clients and know who's pre -approved for a mortgage.
You can waste a long time if you sign a contract and then the person goes looking for the financing and doesn't get it.

Good luck whatever way you choose to go forward.

[Marthe48]

20. Thank you

I'm just beginning. I have other things going on, or waiting to go on, so I'm not giving this my full attention. I just wanted to talk about it. Both my daughters are busy and I would rather listen to them.

[Merlot]

30. Only accept offers from someone with a pre-approval in hand.

You would't sign a contract without a pre-approval letter from a bank. Doesn't take a real estate agent to figure out who is pre-approved.

[TexasBushwhacker]

21. I've done it both ways. IMHO, using a realtor is well worth the 6% commission

The only reason I sold my first house myself is because I sold it for $56K and 6% of that wouldn't have gotten much assistance from any realtor. When we sold my mother's house, the realtor was an old friend. He walked every house listed in the neighborhood to see the competition, made some suggestions as to what was worth fixing and what wasn't and suggested a good price. Sold in 3 weeks, closed in 6. Done and done!

[Marthe48]

22. Nice!

[TexasBushwhacker]

23. Yeah, it's one thing to look at the comps

and see what other properties in the area sold for in the last 6 months and what the current properties are listed for, but someone really need to check out the properties in person to see how they compare to yours. FYI, little things like pressure washing the home and fence can be done yourself (or costs little money) and can make it look as fresh as a new paint job. Since it hasn't been lived in for a while, make sure it's aired out and doesn't smell musty. Unless, it's a pricey property, don't bother staging it with furniture. Keep utilities on so that people can run faucets, furnaces, etc. Be sure ALL mail delivery is stopped so you don't have junk mail piling up in the mailbox.

[Marthe48]

25. We've been keeping it up

Did some repairs, framed in a toilet in the basement, painted the porch floors with non-skid sand paint, repainted as needed, and power-washed it, and did yard work. I wanted to have one of my friends help me sweep the floors upstairs, but she is busy. They aren't horrible, just dusty. Smells good. Location is good, close to schools and Marietta College, walking distance to the rivers, shopping, events. We cleaned it out entirely, because the walls and wood-work are selling points. Oak picture rails in every room but the kitchen, and plate rails in the dining room 2 non-working oak and tile fireplaces, pocket doors.

The mail is almost stopped. I'll tpe the mailbox shut haha

Thanks for the tip. I'll let everyone knows how it goes.

[haele]

33. One friend told me to make cinnamon toast or cookies before a showing or open house.

She did real estate "as a hobby" Not only do you have a treat waiting for people looking (make sure you have some small bottles of water available), the house will smell like "home" to them.
When I sold my 1970's era house (as a 2 bdrm, 2 bath "fixer", dropping the price I could ask by about $20K) by myself, the main issue was not the roof that was getting to the end of it's lifetime or the need for a few cosmetic repairs due to pet damage over the years (puppies are almost worse than toddlers...) , it was with the kitty litter area - no matter how much I cleaned.
The house didn't smell of pets, people always commented with surprise when they saw the critters. Everyone loved the house until they walked into the well ventilated master bath and saw the box and the scattered sand on the floor, because inevitably, the little monsters would just have to take a dump right before people walked in. No one had too many issues with the tore up carpet or roof - the open kitchen area with French doors leading to a pergola to the backyard, arched entries, lots of double pane windows and tons of built-ins was the main selling point when I bought it, and most people felt the same way when they saw it, but a kitty litter box, no matter how "artful" just killed the vibe.
The people who eventually bought the place were going to rip it down to the studs, reconfigure everything, and add a room before they moved in anyway. They had five kids and were more interested in the lot dimensions - half again the usual city lot in that area - than they were the house itself. Which was sad in a way, but hey, there was a lot of difference between building codes from the early 1970's and the 2000's.

Haele

[Merlot]

31. Good point about the smell.

Walking into a smelly house is the worst. If you're a prospective buyer you have to wonder if the smell will come out without extensive cleaing and painting, new flooring etc.

Your house sounds lovely, and I'm sure you'll have no problem selling it!

[fierywoman]

27. (Don't forget the recently baked brownies smell when people come over!)

[brush]

28. Be sure to make a counter you can live with to the offer you have.

[Marthe48]

32. I told the one person my bottom price

and she went below that. So for now, she and I are done negotiating. Today was disappointing, both appts. to look were no shows. At some point, I have to go out of town for an indefinite time. I can get a realtor to handle it while I'm gone and maybe be done when I get back. Which would be nice.